Ford Motor Co. said Friday it no longer plans to offer American customers the Focus Active crossover from China because of tariffs imposed by President Trump.
The impact to future sales is expected to be marginal, according to a Ford spokesman.
[Read: Trump plans to go through with massive China tariffs next week: Report]
“We have made a business decision to stop development of the Focus Active crossover for U.S. customers due to the negative financial impact” of the new duties,” he said. “The Focus Active crossover would have been a low-volume utility, with annual sales of fewer than 50,000 units.”
The Trump administration’s tariff on vehicles built in China is part of a 25 percent duty on $50 billion of imports from the world’s second-largest economy. The White House is separately weighing a 25 percent tariff on all automotive shipments from abroad, and Trump is expected to add levies to an additional $200 billion in Chinese products, a move that businesses and lawmakers alike have criticized.
Profits at Ford plunged by 48 percent to $1 billion in the most recent earnings quarter amid a slowdown in sales in China. Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum imports are also driving up raw material costs, Ford executives said.
The spokesman said the Dearborn, Mich.-based carmaker continues to focus on its vehicle lineup and “is committed to returning operating margins to 10 percent in North America.”
[Also read: Trump says China wants trade deal, but it’s ‘not the right time’]
